STTMP music

[Basill]

I know what you mean. TMP came out before I was born, and I always knew that theme as the TNG theme. I can even remember watching Star Trek V and thinking "They just re-used the TNG theme; how lame!" only to discover later that TNG was really the one that did the re-using.

Now, I just appreciate the TMP theme as the much grander sounding original version of the TNG theme; the way it was meant to be heard, similar to the way the theme from the Stargate movie sounds so much better than the SG-1 theme.

But I never had the experience of hearing the TMP theme before TNG existed, so I can't totally separate the two in my mind. (An even weirder experience was seeing an NFL highlight reel from the early 1980s that used the TMP theme in its soundtrack. At the time, I'm sure they chose it as an energetic movie theme, but now it's funny to hear that music as the soundtrack for football!)

Well, you're a youngin' aren't cha!

I've loved movie music since I was a kid, and my Sci_Fi music was my all time favorite. I can remember when I sat down to watch the first episode of TNG as it began airing in syndication, how excited I was at the prospect of getting new theme music to add to the collection of sound that had come before. Boy did I feel gypped. Later, when I heard the Dennis McCarthy music, I didn't feel quite so bad. I eventually came to appreciate the re-use, but it will never hold the same reverence in my heart as the TMP original does. McCarthy's version isn't horrible, and I've since committed it to memory, but it does have a touch of the corny. The hints you can hear of it in rest of the pilot soundtrack are better.

I have to admit, I was about to ask A beaker full of death who the devil Lars Gnuderstardt was!

 

[Nebusj]

Another surprising little appearance of The Motion Picture music is in a couple of SCTV episodes, including -- if I'm not mistaken, and I'm not positive because I haven't had the chance to check -- ``Ilia's Theme'' being used almost certainly without permission [1] in the classic episode ``CCCP1'' as background music to a space road adventure. That episode is included in the SCTV Volume 2 DVD set.


[1] They were less than properly responsible about securing music rights, which is one of the reasons SCTV on DVD was so terribly delayed. Most of the problems have been cleared up, however, so go get them already. They also have rather often loving and accurate parodies of Trek and many other classic shows and concepts.

 

[Outpost4]

Captain Paranoyd said:
I think they should have used this, personally.

That's great!

 

[Peach Wookiee]

Outpost4 said:

Captain Paranoyd said:
I think they should have used this, personally.

That's great!

Seconded!

 

[cardinal biggles]

This theme works for me.

 

[David cgc]

I guess TNG wasn't all sterile and conflict-free after all.

 

[StewMc]

The Murder, She Wrote theme would have been ideal, it worked for TWOK in that clip that guy posted a couple of years back.

 

[drasche]

Justtoyourleft said:

Tharpdevenport said:
did the original theme. And they didn't like it and used Goldsmith's TMP.

[url="http://youtube.com/watch?v=BCjuOhTiEmY"]http://youtube.com/watch?v=BCjuOhTiEmY
Credits with the original theme.

OMG, as someone else said, it's Galaxy Quest!

I thought about GQ too! I love it!

 

[Peach Wookiee]

cardinal biggles said:
This theme works for me.

LMAO!

 

[Warped9]

Eddie Roth said:
But seriously, don't you agree that the use of the theme in TNG kinda took something away from TMP on repeated viewings? I'm a bigger TOS fan than TNG, but still I identify the theme a lot more with TNG. It feels strange to hear the music in TMP these days.

No, because I never felt the TMP theme suited TNG. TMP's theme conveyed a sense of boldness and adventure, something TNG never was. I've enjoyed episodes of TNG, but it never impressed me as bold and adventurous.

 

[Ryan Thomas Riddle]

Tharpdevenport said:
Dennis McCarthy did the original theme. And they didn't like it and used Goldsmith's TMP.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=BCjuOhTiEmY
Credits with the original theme.

McCarthy's original theme for TNG was recycled as Picard's Theme in E@F and throughout the first season. The theme pops up once and awhile in the second but is virtually gone in the thrid.

 

[David cgc]

I think of it as the "All's Well That End's Well" theme, since it was used so often at the end of the episodes after the central problems were solved and the crew was trying to figure out what to do to tie it up since they couldn't make fun of Spock like on the old show.

 

[Jeffe63]

What was the reason that the TMP score was re-used for either TNG or TFF? They shouldve just kept using James Horner's theme.

Here's a thought: imagine how the tone of future trek would be if instead of recycling TMPs score for either TV or film they wouldve used James Horners score again. I loved his themes, so If that were to ever happen, well, Id have to change my underwear!

 

[Deleted 2]

^ I've been told that Horner had an unpleasant time scoring ST II & III, and had expressed his disinterest in working on another Star Trek movie.

I can imagine Star Trek V with the ST III theme... TNG, not so much.

 

[Jeffe63]

I have heard that Horner thought of trek as his kindergarten, so to speak. He wanted to move on and expand his opportunites. If this were true, though, there would have been nothing to stop him from doing other films and then everyonce in a while return and do trek (just as Goldsmith, one of the greatest film composers ever, did). I think he thought he was just too "good", too "big", to do trek.

Not to worry, we'll get a great composition from Michael Giacchino. He has a few "big" films under his belt, and yet he's gonna do "trek"

 

[tharpdevenport]

Shame, because while Horner has done some good work these years, he's had nothing like his hit-after-hit era of the 1980's.

 

[destructive]

horner is the most un-original bastard to ever hit the scoring stage

 

[Jeffe63]

I have to agree. All of his themes take cues from other films. For crying out loud, there was an entire track in Cocoon taken from TWOK. Now, Im not a composer, and maybe its hard after 30 somard films to still be original, but make an effort. Goldsmith, Williams, and Elfman have been able to.

Phew. Now that Ive taken a breath and calmed down, again we dont know what its like to do his job, and maybe different people have limited amount of originality in their heads. So maybe we shouldnt bash him and be grateful for 2 great soundtracks. Just wish there was more.

 

[Opus]

A beaker full of death said:

jiggyjack said:
In the scene where Kirk first sees the Enterprise the Theme from NG is playing I was dumbfounded I could not believe I did not notice that before.

Am I wrong or did it used to be something else and change with the directors cut release.

No, you're right. When TNG became popular they decided to scrap the original theme by Lars Gnuderstardt and put in the theme Goldman wrote for TNG.

Ahhhh, Lars Gnuderstardt! The finest Duchy of Prussian-American film composer/Teutonic Knight that ever lived! The finest composer who ever denounced the formation of a united Germany in 1871. "Otto von Bismark BE DAMNED!" he'd always say, then he'd write a melody including a tremelo. Always the tremelo.

I loved the scores he wrote in the Errol Flynn movies of the 1930, the alternate musical version of "It's a Wonderful Life", the credits for "Village of the Damned", his work in "The Matrix" and with Beck, as well as scoring all the parts for Tony Bennett's duet album, plus his brief stint as head of the National Weather Bureau. No possibility of a "Hurricane Strudel" after he left.

Damn shame his music was cut from TMP for that TNG crap! Hard to find a copy of the original theme these days. THANKS, PARAMOUNT!

 

[Opus]

destructive said:
horner is the most un-original bastard to ever hit the scoring stage

That's baloney. All film scoring is dirivative, and that includes Goldsmith, Williams, Kamen, and Horner.

But Horner has done some nice stuff. I think the melody for Cocoon is splendid. And his work for 'The Perfect Storm' is fantastic.

The only score of his I found awful was 'Titanic'. THAT was garbage.